


Selective Truth

by Pluttskutt



Series: FH Flatmates AU [16]
Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-15
Updated: 2017-08-17
Packaged: 2018-12-14 23:32:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11793741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pluttskutt/pseuds/Pluttskutt
Summary: Friends are a good thing because they're there for you if you're there for them.





	1. Hello my Name is Anxious

**Author's Note:**

> Hello~ This part has 2 chapters and the 2 chapter will be up later this week. Thank you for the kudos and the nice comments! If you want to talk with me on tumblr about dragon age or something my name there is also Pluttskutt :D

The warm chocolate at the café wasn't as good as Garrett's but good enough. Everything Garrett cooked tasted better. The Amell bakery had much tastier cakes than the café. Fenris knew he was spoilt with how Garrett gave him cake and bread for free, but he wouldn't reject Garrett's kindness.

"What do you mean?" Isabela asked, and put a sugar cube in her coffee.

Fenris sighed and stirred his chocolate. "He didn't say what it was he had to do first, but he'd ask me out when the terms are right," he explained poorly.

"You have to make him explain what. He owes you at least that much," she told him sternly.

"I am the one who owes him. If what he wants is time then I will give that to him." He hadn't expected anything after that kiss; not with what happened after, and he wasn't sure what to think of Garrett's confession.

"You don't owe him anything!" Isabela frowned. "He's the one who accepted you living with him without asking for anything in return. I say you go home and demand an answer." She stirred her coffee.

"We recently began talking again, I do not want to endanger that." He looked to the side. It was difficult to look at her knowing everything that came out of his mouth were lies.

"You don't have to endanger anything, just walk up to him and demand an answer to what he wants from you," she suggested (or ordered), and drank her coffee.

"I will give him the time he needs. I do not want to pressure an answer." He looked at his cup and grabbed it with both hands.

"Ask him what he meant with terms. You don't have to pressure him, just ask what he meant." She raised her shoulders and looked at him.

"I will think about it," he said, and sipped his chocolate. "Can I ask you about him? Or should I not?" Friendship and where lines were was difficult to learn. Asking for secondhand information about Garrett might not be the right thing to do, but he felt he spoke about his past and Garrett didn't. There were snippets, but not an open conversation. If he knew more he’d understand Garrett better.

"Ask me anything. I know all there is to know, I even know if he's a top." She winked.

He looked down at the table and shook his head. "That is not what I want to know. It is not important now. I want to know why he told me relationships are not for him." He remembered it vaguely but knew Garrett was serious when he said it: romance wasn't his thing, so how he suddenly changed his mind felt suspicious.

"Oh, that," Isabela sighed. "I heard he had a serious relationship in Lothering, and in Kirkwall well…" She put the cup down on the table. "When he was a refugee he only wanted to take care of his family and didn't think about romance. He worked a lot, but he also drank and when he drank…" She shook her head.

"He had one night stands?" Fenris asked. _How can he be fine not having sex now then,_ he thought.

"Marian said that he craved intimacy but didn't want to drag anyone into his misery so he kept it casual, in the end creating the outcome he expected, and he hasn't had a serious relationship since he came to Kirkwall," she explained.

He looked at her. It explained a lot about how Garrett acted. If he didn't expect a relationship to last he wouldn't want to be in one. It didn't surprise him that Garrett would self-destruct to cope.

"Has he talked about his relationship in Lothering?" he asked.

"No." She shook her head. "Then he got rich and suddenly people flocked around him and I think he tried but nothing serious ever happened."

He nodded and looked down in his cup. Garrett had a lot more experience with dating than him, but to think they wanted him for his money angered him.

Garrett had much more to offer. Not that Fenris could say he'd approach Garrett if it had been under any other circumstances; Garrett was too good. "Is he afraid I am not serious with my feelings?"

Isabela raised her eyebrows and pouted. "Could be, he hasn't told me. I know a lot about him but only his siblings know how he was before the war. I heard he joked a lot and wanted to take over the farm, and was popular in school."

He smiled. It suited Garrett to be popular. Gentle, handsome, athletic, and kindhearted. "He spoke of Marian, and said she wasn't feeling well. What was wrong with her?"

Her smile dropped. He realised it was cruel to ask her because they had been together. Marian was a big part of Garrett's life -of all their lives- and he'd never meet her.

"She couldn't read people."

He tilted his head at the explanation.

"I know right, no big deal? But she never lied either, or was cruel, so the others kids picked on her. Garrett avoided her." She rested her chin in her hand.

"Children are cruel," he said. Lack of context made him unable to say anything else. He remembered being picked at for being an elf. Not by children in school because his mother couldn't afford to send him, but by human children where he worked.

"She said she didn't hate her siblings but something just separated them. She worried about Carver the most, him being in Garrett's shadow and all that jazz." Her explanation of their childhood made sense since no one mentioned her.

"They don't talk about her," Fenris said.

"The media destroyed her image and they couldn't mourn her without people calling them murder sympathies. Now it's been so long I don't think they know how," she said.

"What was Marian like?" They all knew her, but Merrill said Marian didn't like them. _Why would she be around them if she didn't_ , he wondered, _and how did she get together with Isabela if she didn't like them?_

"Selfish," Isabela said. "Honest about it too, which was refreshing."

His brow furrowed. Garrett was the opposite; kind and generous without expecting anything in return. "How?"

"She didn't care about anyone, which made Anders furious, but of course she didn't care," she laughed. "She did so many things to prove it and when Carver told me she was the one who found Cooper and raised him I didn't believe it."

_That explains why Cooper doesn't listen to Garrett,_ he thought. "Did she and her siblings have a better relationship in Kirkwall?"

"I don't know. They all changed when they fled here I imagine."

"Thank you for telling me about her."

She smiled and grabbed her cup. "You're welcome sweetie, also he's versatile." She winked.

His brows furrowed.

"Garrett, he likes to switch."

His eyes widened. "That isn't what I wanted to know!" he hissed. Now that she said it he couldn't help but think about it. He felt his face heat up at his perverted imagination. It wouldn't happen. He didn't want it to happen.

"Uh-huh," Isabela teased. He wished the floor would open up and swallow him. "You made me talk about feelings so talk about yours or I'll ask you with Garrett in the room."

He shook his head; both at her threat and the idea to talk about his feelings. _Would Garrett be okay with their relationship if they didn't have sex_ , he thought. Only Garrett knew the answer.


	2. Warmth

Cooper rolled around on the bed and stretched out. How he survived in such a small apartment Fenris would never understand. It wasn't too small for him, he was happy not to be restricted to a corner of the room, but for a mabari hound it seemed like a small place.

"Hellu," Garrett greeted him, and walked into his room.

Fenris looked up at him. When he realised Garrett wouldn't be in his room he stopped turning the bed back into a sofa every day. It saved him the time of turning it into a bed when he felt sleepy. "Hey." He grabbed the duvet around him and pulled it tighter around his legs. He wore no pants to bed and didn't want Garrett to see that.

"Can I sit?" Garrett asked, and gestured at the empty space at the edge of the bed.

"Yes," Fenris answered, and nodded. Garrett sat down and Fenris looked at the space behind him. "There is room here." Cooper laid on the other side so Garrett could sit next to Fenris. If he wanted.

"Yeah but… you okay with that?" Garrett asked, and looked at him.

Fenris nodded.

"Okay."

He looked back down at his phone and felt the bed move when Garrett sat beside him. He glanced up and saw him prop a pillow up against the wall for support. "Why don't you talk about Marian?" he asked, and put his phone down.

Garrett put his hands on his stomach and drummed. "How'd the talk with Isabela go?" he asked. "I'm guessing Marian's name came up," he smiled, and batted his eyelashes.

"It did. As did your past of meaningless sex night after night after night," Fenris said.

Garrett rolled his eyes.

"Why haven't you told me? I would have understood." They were friends, close friends, and neither wanted to jeopardise that. Casual sex would because Fenris made it clear on several occasions he liked Garrett a little more than he should. Garrett felt guilty for pushing him on his bed for more than one reason. Fenris understood and didn't judge him for it.

"I liked you not knowing, made me feel like a different person." Garrett looked up at the ceiling. "Also, I only have one night stands when I'm drunk, and I'm sober now, so I'm ashamed of how I acted."

Fenris looked at him.

Garrett stubbornly stared at the ceiling.

"How long have you been sober now?" He hadn't seen Garrett drink alcohol once. Not even cider or punch. The rest of the gang drank but not Garrett. It was strong of him to stay by his principals.

Garrett blew up his cheeks with air and let it out with a pop. His fingers drummed his stomach and he sank down a little. "About half a year," he said, eyes fixed on the ceiling.

Fenris' brow furrowed. "I moved in half a year ago," he pointed out. Not exactly half a year. He didn't remember the exact date. The first days were a blur of sleep and nightmares.

"Yeah." Garrett looked at him. "So what did you tell Isabela? And more importantly, what'd she say about me?"

Fenris looked away. He propped himself up to sitting instead of slouching.

Garrett crossed his ankles.

"I told her you are undecided if you should date me and want to wait until the terms are equal."

Garrett scoffed and shook his head. "Like a true romantic," he declared, and smirked. "That explains the ass-whooping emojis she keeps sending me."

Fenris tilted his head but didn't ask. Isabela enjoyed her emojis. "She told me to march up to you and demand an answer."

Garrett's body shook with laughter.

"She also mentioned your serious relationship back in Lothering." Just like that his laughter seized. Fenris regretted bringing it up; worried he mentioned something he shouldn't have.

"I don't want to talk about her." Garrett turned his head away and looked at the ceiling again. "Should I? You've told me a lot about your past."

Fenris gripped the duvet. "Danarius is not an ex." His jaw clenched. It couldn't be helped. Thinking about him -about his past- sent chills down his spine. As if talking would summon him.

"I'm sorry." Garrett poked his hand with his thumb. "I didn't mean specifically, I meant in general, if you want to know just ask," he said, and gently caressed Fenris' hand with his thumb.

"You said you don't want to talk about her." Fenris looked up.

Garrett bit the inside of his cheek. "I guess talking about my past sober would be an experience." He laughed. He was so hurt he couldn't talk about it unless drunk, but he laughed about it. "You okay with this? Lying to Isabela I mean," he said.

Fenris looked at his phone.  "I can't tell anyone about my new identity or it can leak," he repeated what Garret told him. Not word by word maybe, but he remembered how serious Garrett was.

"Lying to your friends isn't fun, I'm sorry, I know Isabela means a lot to you."

He hooked his little finger around Garrett's thumb. It felt odd to be so close to him (in bed) and not be expected to do anything or have anything done to him. "How do I act now?" he asked. "Won't they ask questions?" _Could he just show up with a new ID that wasn't fake and not expect questions,_ he thought, _doubtful_.

"Say Varric helped you." Garrett shrugged.

"That is a lie," Fenris said. "You don't have to deny, I know it is, but thank you." He turned his body a little to the side to lay comfortable when they talked.

"You're welcome. Did you talk about something else?"

Fenris looked away to the side. They did but maybe it wasn't good to bring up more of Garrett's past. Suddenly he fidgeted a lot with his fingers and Fenris looked down to see what was going on. "What are you doing?" he asked, and Garrett let out a groan.

"I am attempting to intertwine our fingers but you are not conformable," he complained.

Fenris parted his fingers and Garrett let out a triumphant sound. Fenris chuckled at the proud look on Garrett's face. "She said you and Marian didn't get along," he said. It wasn't his intention to make Garrett uncomfortable but if he needed to talk Fenris was there for him.

"Yeah, no. She was weird and my friends bullied her so I stayed away from her to stay popular. I was a shit." Garrett looked up at the ceiling again. "That's not even the saddest part," he mumbled.

Fenris looked at him. "What is?" he asked when Garrett said nothing. "You don't have to tell me, I shouldn't have brought her up."

"I’ll tell you about her one day. Marian was a remarkable woman." Garrett looked at him and smiled.

Fenris squeezed his hand. "Isabela mentioned something else," he said, and looked down when Garrett met his gaze.

"Oh? What was that?"

He debated if he should say and decided to do so if only to see Garrett's reaction. "She said you are versatile," he said.

Garrett's eyebrows shot to the roof with his widened eyes. He stared at Fenris. Blinked. Opened his mouth. Shut it. "Okay," he said shortly and looked away. His eyebrows did not settle and the frown on his forehead did not go away.

"I thought you liked to... top because of what happened at the estate," Fenris said.

Garrett stared at him. His face seemed stuck in the same expression.

_This was fun_ , Fenris thought. He’d never imagined Garrett was shy about his preferences.

"Really?" His voice cracked. He cleared his throat. "What-what about- what about you? Since we're talking about this now, apparently." His voice reached depths and heights Fenris thought only possible for teenagers.

"I do not know," he answered honestly.

Garrett blinked. His forehead calmed down and his eyebrows lowered back to normal state. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Fenris looked away, worried how Garrett would take the truth. "I was not allowed… Danarius kept me below him where I belonged," he explained. Danarius and his business partners, but he didn't want Garrett to know more about that. With his record of revealing stuff when he was drunk it'd come out eventually. He didn't even think he drank that much but the moment he saw Garrett he wanted to tell him everything. He didn't understand why.

"It's good you told me to stop at the house then, you know what you don't want." Garrett brushed his thumb on Fenris' hand. It comforted him. Strange how such a small gesture helped.

"Indeed," he said, and closed his eyes. Garrett chuckled but said nothing more. It felt safe to be with him; something Fenris never thought he'd feel in his life.

"I have to walk Cooper," Garrett whispered.

Fenris tightened his grip around his fingers.

"I'll be back soon. Cosy down in bed."

He let go of Garrett. Gentle fingers brushed through his hair. He let out a pleased sigh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Don't forget to comment and/or kudos~


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